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Women’s scientific participation

Summary

Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a community of women who participated, often actively and routinely, in the nineteenth-century scientific community. Here is a…

Matches: 22 hits

  • … Observers Women: Letter 1194 - Darwin to Whitby, M. A. T., [12 August …
  • … silkworm breeds, or peculiarities in inheritance. Letter 3787 - Darwin, H. E. to …
  • … observations of cats’ instinctive behaviour. Letter 4258 - Becker, L. E. to Darwin, …
  • … to artificially fertilise plants in her garden. Letter 4523 - Wedgwood, L. C. to …
  • … be made on seeds of Pulmonaria officinalis . Letter 5745 - Barber, M. E. to …
  • … Expression from her home in South Africa. Letter 6736 - Gray, A. & J. L …
  • … Expression during a trip to Egypt. Letter 7223 - Darwin to Wedgwood, L. C., …
  • … Darwin's daughter, Henrietta. Letter 7179 - Wedgwood, L. C. to Darwin, [5 …
  • … on her ongoing observations of wormholes. Letter 8611 - Cupples, A. J. to …
  • … her observations on the expression of emotion in dogs with Emma Darwin. Letter 8676 …
  • … insects or plants on Darwin’s behalf. Letter 8683 - Roberts, D. to Darwin, [17 …
  • … of an angry pig and her niece’s ears. Letter 8701 - Lubbock, E. F . to Darwin, …
  • … she make observations of her pet cats. Letter 8989 - Treat, M. to Darwin, [28 July …
  • … New Zealand. Letter 6453 - Langton, E. to Wedgwood, S. E., [9 November 1868] …
  • Letter 5756 - Langton, E. & C. to Wedgwood S. E., [after 9 November 1868] Darwin …
  • … lakes in Pennsylvania. Letter 3681  - Wedgwood, M. S. to Darwin, [before 4 August …
  • … on holiday in Llandudno. Letter 4823  - Wedgwood, L. C. to Darwin, H. E., [May 1865] …
  • … any way he can. Letter 8144 - Darwin to Wedgwood, L. C., [5 January 1872] …
  • … Wedgwood, S. E. & J. to Darwin, [10 November 1837] Emma’s sister, Sarah, passes on …
  • … E. to Darwin, W. E., [January 23rd 1887]: Emma Darwin tells her eldest son, William, …
  • … E. to Darwin, W. E. , (March, 1862 - DAR 219.1:49) Emma Darwin updates her son, William, …
  • … is a great critic”, thought the article worth reprinting, Emma was less convinced. Letter

Darwin in letters, 1874: A turbulent year

Summary

The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early months working on second editions of Coral reefs and Descent of man; the rest of the year was mostly devoted to further research on insectivorous plants. A…

Matches: 23 hits

  • … be done by observation during prolonged intervals’ ( letter to D. T. Gardner, [ c . 27 August …
  • … pleasures of shooting and collecting beetles ( letter from W. D. Fox, 8 May [1874] ).  Such …
  • … And … one looks backwards much more than forwards’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 11 May [1874] ). …
  • … was an illusory hope.— I feel very old & helpless’  ( letter to B. J. Sulivan, 6 January [1874] …
  • … inferred that he was well from his silence on the matter ( letter from Ernst Haeckel, 26 October …
  • … in such rubbish’, he confided to Joseph Dalton Hooker ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 18 January [1874] …
  • … that Mr Williams was ‘a cheat and an imposter’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 27 January 1874 ). …
  • … his, ‘& that he was thus free to perform his antics’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 29 January [1874 …
  • … Darwin had allowed ‘a spirit séance’ at his home ( letter from T. G. Appleton, 2 April 1874 ). …
  • … edition, published in 1842 ( Correspondence  vol. 21, letter to Smith, Elder & Co., 17 …
  • … Hooker, and finally borrowed one from Charles Lyell ( letter to Smith, Elder & Co., 8 January …
  • … to take so sweetly all the horrid bother of correction’ ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 21 [March …
  • … sent an apology for misinterpreting Darwin on this point ( letter from J. D. Dana, 21 July 1874 ); …
  • … numbers and sex ratios among the Pitcairn islanders ( letter from William Dealtry, 16 January 1874 …
  • … will say that I have pounded the enemy into a jelly’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 14 April 1874 ). …
  • … by none but anatomists; and never mind where it goes’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 16 April 1874 ). …
  • … satisfaction. Assisted in the wording by his wife, Emma, and daughter Henrietta, he finally wrote a …
  • … a comfortable cabin ( see letter from Leonard Darwin to Emma Darwin, [after 26 June -- 28 September …
  • … much in Switzerland ( letter from Francis and Amy Darwin, 8 August [1874] ). Francis had …
  • … to become Darwin’s secretary. They rented Down Lodge and Emma Darwin wrote, ‘They have . . . made …
  • … the average in prettiness & snugness’ ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 12 October …
  • letter to Down School Board, [after 29 November 1873] ). Emma saw a ‘great blessing’ in the rumour …
  • … dead uncle’s position of vicar of Deptford ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. B. Innes, 12 October …

Henrietta Darwin's diary

Summary

Darwin's daughter Henrietta kept a diary for a few momentous weeks in 1871. This was the year in which Descent of Man, the most controversial of her father's books after Origin itself, appeared, a book which she had helped him write. The small…

Matches: 3 hits

  • … on the expression of emotion (see letters from F. J. Wedgwood to H. E. and C. R. Darwin, [1867–72], …
  • … wills are free? If these questions are hopeless Huxleys 8 advice is good—turn our eyes from …
  • … when I feel my day made bright & happy by one short letter. I want him to take me in his arms …

Dining at Down House

Summary

Sources|Discussion Questions|Experiment Dining, Digestion, and Darwin's Domestic Life While Darwin is best remembered for his scientific accomplishments, he greatly valued and was strongly influenced by his domestic life. Darwin's…

Matches: 13 hits

  • … In addition to sharing a tender relationship with his wife Emma, Darwin played an active role in the …
  • … and Conclusion”). Letters Letter Packet: Dining at Down House …
  • … ill health began on his Beagle voyage. In this letter (written amidst the excitement of South …
  • … difficulties of traveling on horseback while ill. Letter 465 —Emma Wedgwood (Emma Darwin …
  • … making himself agreeable” for her sake. Letter 3626 —Emma Darwin to T. G. Appleton, 28 …
  • … to thank Appleton for gifts sent from America. Letter 3597 —Darwin to Joseph Dalton …
  • … on the difficulties of finding a suitable cook. Emma Darwin to Henrietta Darwin, [4 …
  • … among other things, for Darwin’s complaints. Emma Darwin to Henrietta Darwin, [14 April …
  • … Scottish medium, Daniel Dunglass Home, with Galton. Emma Darwin to Henrietta Darwin, [4 …
  • … over puddings”. Leonard Darwin to George Darwin, 8 February [1878] Darwin’s youngest …
  • … who was then a professor at Cambridge University. This letter is full of news about the political …
  • … taste of Darwin's life at Down House, recreate recipes from Emma Darwin's cookbook and …
  • … his letters. They were particularly intrigued by this letter written from Emma to Charles before …

Darwin in letters, 1872: Job done?

Summary

'My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, 'is so nearly closed. . .  What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’, and the tenor of his correspondence throughout the year is one of wistful reminiscence, coupled with a keen eye…

Matches: 26 hits

  • … What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’ ( letter to Francis Galton, 8 November [1872] …
  • … anything more on 'so difficult a subject, as evolution’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace,  27 July …
  • … are accustomed to novels for 1s’, he wrote to Murray on 8 January , but Murray complained that …
  • … best efforts, set the final price at 7 s.  6 d.  ( letter from R. F. Cooke, 12 February 1872 ) …
  • … condition as I can make it’, he wrote to the translator ( letter to J. J. Moulinié, 23 September …
  • … translation remained unpublished at the end of the year ( letter from C.-F. Reinwald, 23 November …
  • … to the comparative anatomist St George Jackson Mivart ( letter to St G. J. Mivart,  11 January …
  • … comparison of Whale  & duck  most beautiful’ ( letter from A. R. Wallace, 3 March 1872 ) …
  • … a person as I am made to appear’, complained Darwin ( letter to St G. J. Mivart, 5 January 1872 ). …
  • … Darwin would renounce `fundamental intellectual errors’ ( letter from St G. J. Mivart, 6 January …
  • … was silly enough to think he felt friendly towards me’ ( letter to St G. J. Mivart, 8 January [1872 …
  • … hoping for reconciliation, if only `in another world’ ( letter from St G. J. Mivart,  10 January …
  • … have been ungracious in him not to thank Mivart for his letter.  He promised to send a copy of the …
  • … partly in mind, `chiefly perhaps because I do it badly’ ( letter to A. R. Wallace, 3 August [1872] …
  • … Darwinism is to be the theme. Surely the world moves!’ ( letter from Mary Treat, 13 December 1872 …
  • … to find that Weismann accepted it at least in part ( letter to August Weismann, 5 April 1872 ). ‘I …
  • … few naturalists in England seem inclined to believe it’ ( letter to Herman Müller, [before 5 May …
  • … reached the buzzing place where I myself was standing’ ( letter to Hermann Müller, [before 5 May …
  • … ‘as for myself it is dreadful doing nothing’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 22 October [1872] ). He was …
  • … to stand closer (a serried mass) and to be more erect’ ( letter to Briton Riviere, 19 May [1872] ) …
  • … and amused rather than offended by `that clever book’ ( letter to J. M. Herbert, 21 November 1872 …
  • … wrote offering Arthur May’s drawings shortly afterwards ( letter from Samuel Butler to Francis …
  • … 'exactly where, from his ignorance, he feels no doubts’ ( letter to F. C. Donders, 17 June …
  • … music provided by her husband, Richard Buckley Litchfield ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 13 May 1872 …
  • … to Henrietta; 'I know that I am half-killed myself’ ( letter to H. E. Litchfield, 25 July 1872 …
  • … out such a litany of ill health to one correspondent that Emma protested: `My wife commands me to …

Earthworms

Summary

As with many of Darwin’s research topics, his interest in worms spanned nearly his entire working life. Some of his earliest correspondence about earthworms was written and received in the 1830s, shortly after his return from his Beagle voyage, and his…

Matches: 10 hits

  • … Questions | Experiment Earthworms and Wedgwood cousins As with many of …
  • … of his own family, in particular his nieces, Lucy and Sophy Wedgwood, the daughters of Emma Darwin& …
  • … these two young women, even going so far as to submit Lucy Wedgwood's observations for …
  • … John Murray. Chapters 1 and 3. Letters Letter 385 - Sarah Elizabeth …
  • … In his reply of two days later, Darwin wrote, “Your letter & facts are quite splendid.—I cannot …
  • … request, and his gratitude for her observations. Letter 12745 - Darwin to Sophy …
  • … such a case as grass roots, weeds, in a gravel path.” [ Letter 12760 , 15 October 1880] …
  • … her interest in earthworms and its significance. Letter 13632 - Darwin to John …
  • … QUESTIONS 1. What do you think of Darwin's letter to John Murray? What does Darwin …
  • … this experiment? Can you relate your own observations to the letter selections for this module? …

Darwin in letters, 1882: Nothing too great or too small

Summary

In 1882, Darwin reached his 74th year Earthworms had been published the previous October, and for the first time in decades he was not working on another book. He remained active in botanical research, however. Building on his recent studies in plant…

Matches: 23 hits

  • … ‘I feel a very old man, & my course is nearly run’ ( letter to Lawson Tait, 13 February 1882 ) …
  • … fertility of crosses between differently styled plants ( letter from Fritz Müller, 1 January 1882 …
  • … François Marie Glaziou (see Correspondence vol. 28, letter from Arthur de Souza Corrêa, 20 …
  • … quite untirable & I am glad to shirk any extra labour’ ( letter to G. J. Romanes, 6 January …
  • … probably intending to test its effects on chlorophyll ( letter to Joseph Fayrer, 30 March 1882 ). …
  • … we know about the life of any one plant or animal!’ ( letter to Henry Groves, 3 April 1882 ). He …
  • … of seeing the flowers & experimentising on them’ ( letter to J. E. Todd, 10 April 1882 ). …
  • … find stooping over the microscope affects my heart’ ( letter to Henry Groves, 3 April 1882 ). …
  • … sooner or later write differently about evolution’ ( letter to John Murray, 21 January 1882 ). The …
  • … leaves into their burrows ( Correspondence vol. 29, letter from J. F. Simpson, 8 November 1881 …
  • … on the summit, whence it rolls down the sides’ ( letter from J. F. Simpson, 7 January 1882 ). The …
  • … and was no longer able to take his daily strolls (Henrietta Emma Litchfield, ‘Charles Darwin’s death …
  • … E. Litchfield to G. H. Darwin, 17 March 1882 (DAR 245: 319)) Emma wrote ten days later: ‘You will …
  • … been a good deal plagued with dull aching in the chest’ (Emma Darwin to G. H. Darwin, [ c . 28 …
  • … benefit & he escaped pain entirely yesterday’ (letter from Emma Darwin to G. H. Darwin, 6 April …
  • … wrote to George, who had visited Down on 11 April (Emma Darwin’s diary (DAR 242)). ‘Father was taken …
  • … H. Darwin, [19 April 1882] (DAR 245: 320)). It was left to Emma to convey the sorrowful news to his …
  • … which I hope were never very violent’ ( letter from Emma Darwin to J. D. Hooker, [20 April 1882 …
  • … they were the most overflowing in tenderness’ (letter from Emma Darwin to W. E. Darwin, 10 May 1882 …
  • … was eagerly awaited by his family, including his cousin Emma Wedgwood. In long letters to her sister …
  • … plied him with questions without any mercy’ ( letter from Emma Wedgwood to F. E. E. Wedgwood, [28 …
  • … great minds’ ( letter from Aleksander Jelski, [1860–82] ). In 1863, the final blow was …
  • … both our names to appear’ ( letter to Louisa Stevenson, 8 April 1871 ). It was Darwin’s name that …

Darwin in letters, 1880: Sensitivity and worms

Summary

‘My heart & soul care for worms & nothing else in this world,’ Darwin wrote to his old Shrewsbury friend Henry Johnson on 14 November 1880. Darwin became fully devoted to earthworms in the spring of the year, just after finishing the manuscript of…

Matches: 19 hits

  • … my grandfather’s character is of much value to me’ ( letter to C. H. Tindal, 5 January 1880 ). …
  • … have influenced the whole Kingdom, & even the world’ ( letter from J. L. Chester, 3 March 1880 …
  • … delighted to find an ordinary mortal who could laugh’ ( letter from W. E. Darwin to Charles and …
  • … much powder & shot’ ( Correspondence vol. 27, letter from Ernst Krause, 7 June 1879 , and …
  • … modified; but now I much regret that I did not do so’ ( letter to Samuel Butler, 3 January 1880 ). …
  • … and ‘decided on laying the matter before the public’ ( letter from Samuel Butler, 21 January 1880 …
  • … and uncertain about what to do. He drafted two versions of a letter to the Athen æum , sending …
  • … in which he will have the last word’, she warned ( letter from H. E. Litchfield, [1 February 1880] …
  • … who will fight to the end’, added her husband Richard ( letter from R. B. Litchfield, 1 February …
  • … him & given him Darwinophobia? It is a horrid disease’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 3 February …
  • … squashing the ‘mosquito inflated to an elephant’ ( letter from Ernst Krause, 9 December 1880 ). …
  • … inches of soil as a protection against enemies.’ ‘Your letter … made me open my eyes’, Gray replied …
  • … my excitement’ ( letter from Horace Darwin to Emma Darwin, [18 September 1880] ). Darwin’s …
  • … We find that the light frightens them’ ( letter to Sophy Wedgwood, 8 October [1880] ). The …
  • … Galton, 7 April 1880 , and letter from Francis Galton, 8 April 1880 ). Darwin was queried about …
  • … October 1880 ). The president of the society explained to Emma that the members of the union wished …
  • … …“Come of Age”‘ ( letter from W. C. Williamson to Emma Darwin, 2 September 1880 ). In April, …
  • … year was marked by the loss of several close family members. Emma’s brother Josiah Wedgwood III died …
  • … Surrey, which became a regular destination for Charles and Emma, and also a site of scientific …

Women as a scientific audience

Summary

Target audience? | Female readership | Reading Variation Darwin's letters, in particular those exchanged with his editors and publisher, reveal a lot about his intended audience. Regardless of whether or not women were deliberately targeted as a…

Matches: 21 hits

  • … Were women a target audience? Letter 2447 - Darwin to Murray, J., [5 April 1859] …
  • … Tollet for proofreading and criticisms of style. Letter 2461 - Darwin to Hooker, J. …
  • … E. to Darwin, W. E. , (March 1862 - DAR 219.1:49) Emma Darwin updates her eldest son, …
  • … her to read to check that she can understand it. Letter 7312 - Darwin to Darwin, F. …
  • … from all but educated, typically-male readers. Letter 7124 - Darwin to Darwin, H. E …
  • … he seeks her help with tone and style. Letter 7329 - Murray , J. to Darwin, [28 …
  • … in order to minimise impeding general perusal. Letter 7331 - Darwin to Murray, …
  • … he uses to avoid ownership of indelicate content. Letter 8335 - Reade, W. W. to …
  • … so as not to lose the interest of women. Letter 8341 - Reade, W. W. to Darwin, …
  • … which will make it more appealing to women. Letter 8611 - Cupples, A. J. to …
  • … Darwin’s female readership Letter 5391 - Becker, L. E. to Darwin, [6 February …
  • … of the Manchester Ladies Literary Society . Letter 6551 - Becker, L. E . to …
  • … the chapter on pangenesis, which is a revelation. Letter 6976 - Darwin to Blackwell, A. …
  • … Darwin assumes that 'A. B. Blackwell' is a man. Letter 7177 - Cupples, G. to …
  • … him to the psychology of Herbert Spencer. Letter 7624 - Bathoe, M . B. to Darwin …
  • … his statements on a lack of reasoning in animals. Letter 7644 - Barnard, A. to …
  • … during a visit to an asylum with her father. Letter 7651 - Wedgwood, F. J. to …
  • … on any comments that she feels might be suitable. Letter 7411 - Pfeiffer, E. J. to …
  • … and beauty in the process of sexual selection. Letter 8055 - Hennell, S. S. to Darwin, …
  • … of a woman’s natural thinking”. Letter 8778 - Forster, L. M . to Darwin, H. …
  • Letter 5712 - Dallas, W. S. to Darwin, [8 December 1867] Translator and author …

The "wicked book": Origin at 157

Summary

Origin is 157 years old.  (Probably) the most famous book in science was published on 24 November 1859.  To celebrate we have uploaded hundreds of new images of letters, bringing the total number you can look at here to over 9000 representing more than…

Matches: 2 hits

  • … and friends, including letters between Charles and his wife Emma, and several of their children: …
  • … of Down in Kent, and a lifelong friend of both Charles and Emma, sent information on pigeons …

Darwin in letters, 1868: Studying sex

Summary

The quantity of Darwin’s correspondence increased dramatically in 1868 due largely to his ever-widening research on human evolution and sexual selection.Darwin’s theory of sexual selection as applied to human descent led him to investigate aspects of the…

Matches: 28 hits

  • … in satisfying female preference in the mating process. In a letter to Alfred Russel Wallace in 1864, …
  • … of changing the races of man’ (Correspondence vol. 12, letter to A. R. Wallace, 28 [May 1864] ). …
  • … book would take the form of a ‘short essay’ on man ( letter to Ernst Haeckel, 3 July 1868 ). But …
  • … as well say, he would drink a little and not too much’ ( letter to Albert Günther, 15 May [1868] ) …
  • … would be a great loss to the Book’. But Darwin’s angry letter to Murray crossed one from Dallas to …
  • … of labour to remuneration I shall look rather blank’ ( letter from W. S. Dallas, 8 January 1868 ). …
  • … if I try to read a few pages feel fairly nauseated’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 3 February [1868] ). …
  • … reviews. On 7 August 1868 , he wrote him a lengthy letter from the Isle of Wight on the formation …
  • … would strike me in the face, but not behind my back’ ( letter to John Murray, 25 February [1868] ) …
  • … ignorant article… . It is a disgrace to the paper’ ( letter from A. R. Wallace, 24 February [1868] …
  • … ‘he is a scamp & I begin to think a veritable ass’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 1 September [1868] …
  • … wrote of the colour of duck claws on 17 April 1868 . The letter was addressed to ‘the Rev d  C. …
  • … proved very fruitful. On 1 May , Darwin received a letter from George Cupples, who was encouraged …
  • … with the enthusiastic breeder, who apologised in a letter of 11–13 May 1868 for his ‘voluminuous …
  • … of science On 27 February , Darwin sent a letter of thanks to the naturalist and …
  • … he later added, ‘for it is clear that I have none’ ( letter to J. J. Weir, 30 May [1868] ). …
  • … to various classes, a dim ray of light may be gained’ ( letter to H. T. Stainton, 21 February [1868 …
  • … as well as of ‘victorious males getting wives’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, 25 February [1868] ). …
  • … of females was remarked upon by other entomologists ( letter from Roland Trimen, 20 February 1868 …
  • … and Coleoptera on 9 September . Darwin annotated a letter sent on 3 April by Henry Doubleday …
  • … at Cambridge, George Robert Crotch, writing to his mother Emma in a letter dated [after 16 October …
  • … Langton wrote from the south of France to Sarah Elizabeth Wedgwood on 9 Novembe r, describing …
  • … enemies of Nat. Selection’ ( letter from A. R. Wallace, 8 [April] 1868 ). Researching …
  • … cry (letters to W. E. Darwin, [15 March 1868] and 8 April [1868] ). Such facts proved …
  • … and received a number of reports from family members. Emma Darwin’s niece, Cicely Mary Hawkshaw, …
  • … old daughter Katherine ( letter from C. M. Hawkshaw to Emma Darwin, 9 February [1868] ). Darwin’s …
  • … omnipotent and omniscient Creator’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 8 May [1868] ). Others were concerned …
  • … other national papers, and within a few days Darwin and Emma were receiving letters of …

Natural Science and Femininity

Summary

Discussion Questions|Letters A conflation of masculine intellect and feminine thoughts, habits and feelings, male naturalists like Darwin inhabited an uncertain gendered identity. Working from the private domestic comfort of their homes and exercising…

Matches: 17 hits

  • … Britain? Letters Letter 109 - Wedgwood, J. to Darwin, …
  • … pursuit of real, professional work on his return. Letter 158 - Darwin to Darwin, R. W., …
  • … colour and “beauty” of tropical vegetation. Letter 542 - Darwin to Wedgwood, C. S., [27 …
  • … made up of meals, family time and walks into town with Emma. Letter 555 - Darwin to …
  • … ‘ A Biographical Sketch of an Infant ’. Letter 2781 - Doubleday, H. to Darwin, [3 May …
  • … them in the north-facing borders of his garden. Letter 2864 - Darwin to Hooker, J. D., …
  • … and “never saw anything so beautiful”. Letter 4230 - Darwin to Gardeners’ Chronicle, [2 …
  • … microscopical spherical bodies found on flowers which Emma had gathered and brought into the house …
  • … linked with his domestic family life. Letter 4377 - Haeckel, E. P. A. to Darwin, [2 …
  • … at least provide Darwin with aesthetic pleasure. Letter 4436 - Darwin to Hooker, J. D., …
  • … he has moved one or two of them into his bedroom. Letter 4469 - Hooker, J. D. to Darwin …
  • … before expecting to dedicate his life to science. Letter 4472 - Hooker, J. D. to Darwin …
  • … duty to the public to contribute more than this. Letter 6044 - Darwin to Darwin, G. H., …
  • … and influence to help shape his sons’ fortunes. Letter 6046 - Weir, J. J. to Darwin, …
  • … from the comfort of his “ pretty garden ”. Letter 6139 - Doubleday, H. to Darwin, [22 …
  • … moths all of which were conducted in his home. Letter 6453 - Langton, E. to Wedgwood, S …
  • … attracted to dark spots on the bedroom wallpaper. Letter 10821 - Graham C. C. to Darwin …

Darwin’s observations on his children

Summary

Charles Darwin’s observations on the development of his children, began the research that culminated in his book The Expression of the emotions in man and animals, published in 1872, and his article ‘A biographical sketch of an infant’, published in Mind…

Matches: 25 hits

  • … an aspect of Darwin’s character clearly perceived by Emma during their engagement: ‘You will be …
  • … just as he had earlier analysed his own childhood memories.[8] Yet, though the dissociation was …
  • … period but in far less detail. By September 1844, Henrietta Emma was one year old, and there are a …
  • … by five: George Howard, born 9 July 1845; Elizabeth, born 8 July 1847; Francis, born 16 August 1848; …
  • … the notebook and, with the exception of two brief entries by Emma, made all the notes until July …
  • … movement which causes hiccough.— 2  At his 8 th  day he frowned much. & I believe …
  • … certainly during first fortnight at sudden sounds. & at Emma’s moving 3 [11]  When …
  • … & inwards as in sleep.[14] Six weeks old & 3 days, Emma saw him smile—not only with …
  • … also just at the same period or a few days earlier— Nov. 8[16] When seven weeks old, his eyes …
  • … his eyes becoming fixed & the movements of his arms ceasing. Emma argues that his smiles were …
  • … made in the little noises he was uttering that he recognized Emma by sight when she came close to …
  • … been caused by the novelty of the situation producing fear. Emma thinks that when he was vaccinated …
  • … taking breath after each scream approaches it.— 8  Between 11 & 12 weeks old in …
  • … when doing something disagreeable. say 50–60 days old 7 or 8 weeks old Continues occasionally …
  • … whole expression appearing pleased.— Recognizes Emma Anne & myself perfectly— does not find …
  • … Feb. 17 7 wks  & 3 days 8 – 5 6 wks 8 – 4 …
  • … Oct 28 — 1 st  – 6 – 8         …
  • …       lb  8–”½oz     …
  • … in his mouth. He did this some little time before.— 8 th . Made a melancholy face, by …
  • … Lady” were repeated.— 26 th . Cried, when Emma left off playing the pianoforte.— Did this …
  • … that, I am certain, there was no mistake.— Decemb. 8 th .— Doddy has learnt to put out his …
  • … Anny says Papa pretty clearly—[40] A few days ago Emma gave her doll, but she sensibly shuddered, …
  • … our door N o  12 and N o  11 is in the slit for the Letter box.— he decidedly ran past N o  11 …
  • … has learned them from my sometimes changing the first letter in any word he is using—thus I say …
  • … , pp. 131–2. [6]  Correspondence  vol. 2, letter from Emma Wedgwood, [23 January 1839] . …

Darwin and Fatherhood

Summary

Charles Darwin married Emma Wedgwood in 1839 and over the next seventeen years the couple had ten children. It is often assumed that Darwin was an exceptional Victorian father. But how extraordinary was he? The Correspondence Project allows an unusually…

Matches: 10 hits

  • … Charles Darwin married Emma Wedgwood in 1839 and over the next seventeen years the couple had ten …
  • … lines were built to the area (Darwin to J. D. Hooker,  8 April [1856] ). This meant that most of …
  • … a result, Darwin rarely spent a day without the company of Emma and at least some of his children. …
  • … they employed eight servants including two nursery maids. Emma actively supervised and assisted with …
  • … to see their father when he was working (Darwin to his wife Emma,  [7-8 February 1845] ). Although …
  • … (Darwin to W. D. Fox,  10 October [1850] ) as he and Emma tried to choose suitable schools and …
  • … children in letters to friends, and the choices that he and Emma made were deliberately conventional …
  • … were favourite family games, and in 1859 he ended a letter to his oldest son with the exclamation ‘I …
  • … (Darwin to his son William,  [30 October 1858] ). In one letter in 1856, he explained his paternal …
  • … the age of twenty-six. This meant that in old age Darwin and Emma continued to share Down House with …

Darwin in letters, 1864: Failing health

Summary

On receiving a photograph from Charles Darwin, the American botanist Asa Gray wrote on 11 July 1864: ‘the venerable beard gives the look of your having suffered, and … of having grown older’.  Because of poor health, Because of poor health, Darwin…

Matches: 27 hits

  • … of the five physicians Darwin had consulted in 1863. In a letter of 26[–7] March [1864] , Darwin …
  • … and he received more letters of advice from Jenner. In a letter of 15 December [1864] to the …
  • … As Darwin explained to his cousin William Darwin Fox in a letter of 30 November [1864] , ‘the …
  • … observations indoors ( Correspondence  vol. 11). In a letter of [27 January 1864] , Darwin …
  • … gradation by which  leaves  produce tendrils’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [8 February 1864] ). …
  • … fearfully for it is a leaf climber & therefore sacred’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 2 June [1864] …
  • … matters which routinists regard in the light of axioms’ ( letter from Daniel Oliver, [17 March 1864 …
  • … long series of changes . . .’ When he told Asa Gray in a letter of 29 October [1864] that he was …
  • …  paper was published, Darwin remarked to Hooker in a letter of 26 November [1864] that nothing …
  • … of the two species with the common oxlip. In a letter of 22 October [1864] , Darwin triumphantly …
  • … garden, taking notes by dictation. His niece Lucy Caroline Wedgwood sent observations of  …
  • … household news, were sometimes written by Darwin’s wife, Emma, or by Henrietta. Darwin’s own replies …
  • … the ‘splendid case of Dimorphism’ in  Menyanthes  ( letter from Emma and Charles Darwin to W. E. …
  • … this interest. At the start of the year, he received a letter, insect specimens, and an article on …
  • … that it was ‘the best medicine for my stomach’ ( letter to Daniel Oliver, 17 February [1864] ). …
  • … at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, in 1862 with a letter regarding the fertilisation of the …
  • … two years, with his stipend being paid by Darwin himself ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [1 April 1864] …
  • … is difficult enough to play your part  over  them’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [2 April 1864] ). …
  • … troublesome … they do require very careful treatment’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 8 April 1864 ). …
  • … the conclusion that in giving I am hastening the fall’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 20 April 1864 ) …
  • … his indomitable perseverance, and his knowledge’ ( letter to John Scott, 10 June 1864 ). Hooker …
  • … basis he recommended a first-class cabin for the journey ( letter from J. D. Hooker, [15 August …
  • … and curators at a great distance. Gray forwarded a letter from Charles Wright, a plant collector in …
  • … to the materialist philosophy of Ludwig Buchner ( letter from Hermann Kindt, 5 September 1864 ). …
  • … himself. Haeckel’s scientific life, he reported in a letter of 9 [July 1864] , had been …
  • … latest ‘outburst of bigotry’ ( letter to Hugh Falconer, 8 November [1864] ). Although …
  • … he saw few people outside the family and, according to Emma Darwin’s diary and his own ‘Journal’, …

Darwin in letters, 1871: An emptying nest

Summary

The year 1871 was an extremely busy and productive one for Darwin, with the publication in February of his long-awaited book on human evolution, Descent of man. The other main preoccupation of the year was the preparation of his manuscript on expression.…

Matches: 24 hits

  • … do to talk about it, which no doubt promotes the sale’ ( letter from J. D. Hooker, 26 March 1871 ) …
  • … to her liking, ‘to keep in memory of the book’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, 20 March 1871 ). …
  • … and had forsaken his lunch and dinner in order to read it ( letter from James Crichton-Browne, 19 …
  • … they believe to be the truth, whether pleasant or not’ (letter from W. W. Reade, 21 February 1871). …
  • … and Oldham … They club together to buy them’ ( letter from W. B. Dawkins, 23 February 1871 ). …
  • … one’s n th . ancestor lived between tide-marks!’ ( letter from T. H. Huxley, 20 February 1871 ). …
  • … habits, furnished with a tail and pointed ears”  (letter from Asa Gray, 14 April 1871) …
  • … ‘will-power’ and the heavy use of their arms and legs ( letter from C. L. Bernays, 25 February 1871 …
  • … in order to make it darker than the hair on his head ( letter from W. B. Tegetmeier, [before 25 …
  • … together with an image of an orang-utan foetus ( letter from Hinrich Nitsche, 18 April 1871 ). …
  • … of himself, adding that it made a ‘very poor return’ ( letter to Hinrich Nitsche, 25 April [1871] …
  • … each night, returning to its allotted space each morning ( letter from Arthur Nicols, 7 March 1871 …
  • … without having a high aesthetic appreciation of beauty ( letter from E. J. Pfeiffer, [before 26 …
  • … endowment of spiritual life’ at some time in the past ( letter from Roland Trimen, 17 and 18 April …
  • … to the white’. Darwin thanked Innes for his ‘pleasant letter’, but asserted his antipathy to human …
  • … myself a good way ahead of you, as far as this goes’ ( letter to J. B. Innes, 29 May [1871] ). …
  • … ‘whereas the baboon is as the Creator made it’ ( letter from George Morrish, 18 March 1871 ). …
  • … which are independent of all times and all circumstances’ (8 April 1871, p. 5). Darwin condemned the …
  • … by the presence of its master. ( Letter from Hensleigh Wedgwood, [3–9 March 1871] .) Some …
  • … and morally bound. In one particularly long letter to Wedgwood, Darwin alluded to the pain of …
  • … agreement is a satisfaction to me’ ( letter to Hensleigh Wedgwood, 9 March 1871 ). A …
  • … home, Leith Hill Place in Surrey, and CD’s niece Lucy Wedgwood collected and weighed the dried …
  • … & sherry’ ( letter from H. E. Litchfield to Charles and Emma Darwin, [5 November 1871] ). Her …
  • … age of Newton’ ( letter from Napoleon de la Fleurière, 8 April [1871] ); while Huxley looked …

Religion

Summary

Design|Personal Belief|Beauty|The Church Perhaps the most notorious realm of controversy over evolution in Darwin's day was religion. The same can be said of the evolution controversy today; however the nature of the disputes and the manner in…

Matches: 18 hits

  • … of departure reviews of Origin . The second is a single letter from naturalist A. R. Wallace to …
  • … everything is the result of “brute force”. Letter 2855 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, 3 …
  • … nature, as he is in a “muddle” on this issue. Letter 3256 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, …
  • … shares a witty thought experiment about an angel. Letter 3342 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, …
  • … He asks Gray some questions about design. Letter 6167 — Darwin, C. R. to Gray, Asa, 8
  • … of my precipice”. Darwin and Wallace Letter 5140 — Wallace, A. R. to Darwin, …
  • … of variations. Darwin and Graham Letter 13230 — Darwin, C. R. to Graham, …
  • … of people, including members of his own family. Letter 441 — Wedgwood, Emma to Darwin, …
  • … about his “honest & conscientious doubts”. Letter 471 — Darwin, Emma to Darwin, C. …
  • … there is a danger in giving up revelation”. Letter 2534 — Kingsley, Charles to Darwin, …
  • … need of an act of intervention to bring change. Letter 2548 — Sedgwick, Adam to Darwin, …
  • … with that knowledge which only He can give me.” Letter 5303 — Boole, M. E. to Darwin, C …
  • … that his theory be compatible with her faith. Letter 5307 — Darwin, C. R. to Boole, M. …
  • … and science should each run its own course. Letter 8070 — Darwin, C. R. to Abbot, F. E. …
  • … “with qualifications”, if he wishes. Letter 8837 — Darwin, C. R. to Doedes, N. D., 2 …
  • … man’s intellect, “but man can do his duty”. Letter 12041 — Darwin, C. R. to Fordyce, …
  • … most correct description of my state of mind”. Letter 12757 — Darwin, C. R. to Aveling, …
  • … as examples to illustrate his ideas on beauty. Letter 4752 — Darwin, C. R. to Lyell, …

Darwin’s queries on expression

Summary

When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect observations more widely and composed a list of queries on human expression. A number of handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller…

Matches: 17 hits

  • … handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller, 22 February …
  • … Correspondence about Darwin’s Questionnaire (click on the letter dates to see the individual letters …
  • … Correspondent Letter date Location …
  • … Africa)? ] mentioned in JPM Weale letter, but Bowker's answers not found …
  • … Woolston, Southampton, England letter to W.E. Darwin shrugging …
  • … Square W London, England enclosed in a letter from Henry Maudsley …
  • … South Africa possibly included in letter from Mansel Weale …
  • … Peradeniya, Ceylon enclosed in letter from G.H.K. Thwaites …
  • … Egypt] possibly included in letter(s) from Asa Gray Nile …
  • … Lake Wellington, Australia letter to F.J.H. von Mueller nodding, …
  • … Abbey Place, London, England letter to Emma Darwin baby expression …
  • … Penmaenmawr, Conway, Wales letter to Emma Darwin infant daughter …
  • … Lubbock, E.F. [1867-8?] Lombard Street, London? …
  • … Square W, London, England Enclosed letter from Dr. C. Browne …
  • … W., London, England enclosed in letter from W. W. Reade Hottentots …
  • … England (about Australia) encloses letter from Austrialian friend, letter not …
  • … forwarded by Smyth; Wilson sent letter to Ferdinand von Mueller Victoria Aborigines …

1.2 George Richmond, marriage portrait

Summary

< Back to Introduction Few likenesses of Darwin in his youth survive, although more may once have existed. In a letter of 1873 an old Shrewsbury friend, Arthur Mostyn Owen, offered to send Darwin a watercolour sketch of him, painted many years…

Matches: 15 hits

  • … youth survive, although more may once have existed . In a letter of 1873 an old Shrewsbury friend, …
  • … House, celebrated his marriage in January 1839 to his cousin Emma Wedgwood; the one of Darwin is …
  • … estimate of Richmond’s work can be gauged from a letter which Hooker wrote to Darwin some years …
  • … generally knocks off his chalk heads in 2 sittings gave me 8 & grumbled all the time’, finding …
  • … theories.   As early as February 1839, Elizabeth Wedgwood had written to her sister Emma: ‘My …
  • … Italy – or would a portrait by Holmes be preferable?’ Emma in response promised, ‘I will go and get …
  • … not return from Italy until August or September 1839. Josiah Wedgwood himself wrote to his daughter …
  • … arranging ‘to send you Richmond’s pictures of self and Emma’: ‘self’ presumably means Charles, and …
  • … was being assembled, so that both the Darwin and the Wedgwood families would have one. It is …
  • … lent Richmond’s watercolour drawings of Charles and Emma, with a note that the one of Charles had an …
  • … – the only one she knew about – to 1840. However, in Emma Darwin: A Century of Family Letters …
  • … account books, entry for Dec. 1839. Joseph Hooker, letter to Darwin, 17 March 1862 (DCP-LETT-3474). …
  • … Murray, 1887), vol. 3, p. 371. Henrietta Litchfield (ed.), Emma Darwin: A Century of Family …
  • … University Press, 1933), frontispiece. Barbara and Hensleigh Wedgwood, The Wedgwood Circle 1730 …
  • … this seemingly conflicts with the indications in Erasmus’s letter of 1866, quoted above.   
 …

Darwin’s reading notebooks

Summary

In April 1838, Darwin began recording the titles of books he had read and the books he wished to read in Notebook C (Notebooks, pp. 319–28). In 1839, these lists were copied and continued in separate notebooks. The first of these reading notebooks (DAR 119…

Matches: 19 hits

  • … 39. tom. 4. p. 273. Latreille Geographie des Insectes 8 vo  p 181 [Latreille 1819]. see p. …
  • … de Serres Cavernes d’Ossements 7 th  Ed. 10  8 vo . [Serres 1838] good to trace Europ. forms …
  • … [Reimarius 1760] The Highlands & Western Isl ds  letter to Sir W Scott [MacCulloch 1824 …
  • … by Loudon [Loudon 1831]. Book I. ch. 7 & Book II. Ch. 8. Book. VII. ch 8, 11. read 1 st …
  • … 1834–40]: In Portfolio of “abstracts” 34  —letter from Skuckard of books on Silk Worm …
  • … 1833] (Boot) Leslie life of Constable [Leslie 1843]. (Emma) (read) M rs  Fry’s Life …
  • … Asiatic Society ]—contains very little Macleay’s letter to D r  Fleming [Macleay 1830] …
  • … [Heer 1854].— Hooker has it.— Very important Hookers letter Jan. 1859 Yules Ava [Yule 1858] …
  • … Public Library. 3  ‘Books … Read’ is in Emma Darwin’s hand. 4  “”Traité …
  • … 6  The text from page [1v.] to page [6] is in Emma Darwin’s hand and was copied from Notebook C, …
  • … to old Aristotle.’ ( LL 3: 252). 10  Emma Darwin wrote ‘7 th ’ instead of “3 d “ …
  • … 12  A mistranscription for ‘Entozoa’ by Emma Darwin. See Notebook C, p. 266 ( Notebooks ). …
  • … wrote ‘Transact’ to replace ‘Journal’ written in Emma Darwin’s hand. 16  Emma Darwin …
  • … of the material from these portfolios is in DAR 205, the letter from William Edward Shuckard to …
  • …  The text from page [1a] to half way down page [5a] is in Emma Darwin’s hand and is a copy of CD’s …
  • … ( Notebooks , pp. 319–28). 55  The letter was addressed to Nicholas Aylward Vigors …
  • … in ink by CD. 73  This entry was written by Emma Darwin. 74  “8 … …
  • … to William Jackson Hooker. See  Correspondence  vol. 3, letter to J. D. Hooker, [5 or 12 November …
  • … 119: 21b Broughton, William Grant. 1832.  A letter in vindication of   the principles of …
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